Causal models and the writing of history

Abstract

Historians have resorted to different forms of causal relations in order to explain historical events or processes. This article intends to discuss the issue of causality in history and to indicate possible ways some historians may handle the plurality of causes. In these terms, the “relative frequency” model outlined by Ernest Nagel provides a tool that enables a reflection on the level of importance ascribed by historians to the different causal conditions that they find. Bearing these assumptions in mind, I will analyze, by way of illustration, the explanatory models formulated by Perry Anderson and Moses Finley regarding a specific issue, namely the “decline” of the ancient slavery system, and I will point out to possibilities of applying common referentials to the philosophy of science, which may further our understanding of historical writing.